the other side.

So…at the end of February, I resigned from my position at the television station for a reason that I’m not sure will ever make much sense to the “normal” working world. Andrew had received orders to PCS. We were moving to Fort Benning, GA for the Maneuver Captain’s Career Course.

It was quite difficult for me to walk away from a job that I enjoyed, was good at and felt invested in. It was strange to leave my position on such good terms. I worked more than three weeks after I gave notice. I trained my replacement. I spent the last week on the job being taken out to lunch by the Web Committee (the news director, chief meteorologist, digital content director, promotions director and radio director), my bosses and coworkers. On my last day, I was thrown a going away party, complete with ice cream sundaes. And I received a framed quote about my time with the company, complete with handwritten messages from all of my coworkers expressing their gratitude and well-wishes.

Being a working mil-spouse and being forced to put something down before you are ready to is a hard emotion to describe. I thought I was ready to let it go, ready to just get on with our lives and move forward to the next duty station. But, to my surprise, I cried as I walked out the doors of KRDO NewsChannel 13. I was (and will always be) so grateful for the opportunity to work there, to have found such great mentors and to have been given every opportunity to excel. Whether I knew it then or not, I found so much of my self-worth in my successes at work and giving that up was daunting, to say the least. I don’t know that I ever really would have been ready to leave…

But we did. We left. We packed up our Fort Carson home, tied up loose ends, said goodbye to friends and then drove three days across the country, five months pregnant, in two cars with two big puppies in tow? Not ideal. And when we got to Georgia things didn’t just fall into place. We spent a month shuffling between a hotel and a corporate apartment (or two, after a fiasco with hundreds of bees falling out of A/C vents had us moving out of one and into another).

In case you were wondering, the lesson here is to take as much leave as possible at your outgoing duty-station so that you are on the waiting list for housing much sooner before your report date.

We finally got on post housing, at the very end of March, in the projects of Ft. Benning (as we lovingly refer to them)- Perkins housing. We signed a waiver regarding possible lead paint and asbestos exposure to get into these brick beauties. They are ranch-style homes that were built in the 1940s (I’m guessing) and haven’t been updated or renovated since then (I’m sure of it). I think the spiders and cockroaches have lived here about that long, too. Another one of the many perks of Perkins…

Less than a week after we got the house, I was flying up to NY for an amazing baby shower with my incredibly generous family and friends. A few days later, my mom flew back down with me to Georgia, to help/motivate Andrew and I into unpacking our entire house. In the four days she was here we got all but five boxes opened and put away. She is a moving professional, an organizer and a life-saver. I only hope I can convince her to come with me when we move to our next home, which should be…oh you know…sometime before the end of this year.

::takes a deep breath::

Here we are. Made it to the other side. Our first PCS is under our belt. It was a little bit scary, it was sad, it was a whirlwind, but, when all is said and done, it really was not so bad. It was a learning experience. I’d rate it a B- (my husband might not be so generous).

Only just now, at the end of April- two and a half months later, do I feel like am settling into my life on the other side. The other side of a PCS. The other side of the country. The other side of pregnancy (the third trimester). The other side of the workforce (stay at home mommyhood).

The road ahead of me still seems daunting, but for different reasons now. Reason number one? I’m having a baby in nine weeks! What!?! But I’ve made it this far, and there is no turning back.

I surprised myself when I opened up a new post this morning, the day after my 26th birthday. It’s been a while since I took the time to write, to reflect. But it’s obvious to me now that I needed the reminder to:

At least you can now say you survived it all. It’s hardwork, but it is manageable. We are actually headed to Georgia this summer as well, but I’m not as sad about leaving my job or really anything. I’m looking forward to it.. moving has quickly become one of my favorite things to do.

Glad to see you’re back and things are going for you. Sorry to hear you hated to leave your job (I know what you mean…on my last day at work, I made a hot mess of myself and bawled like a little baby…embarrassing. Definitely not how I wanted my coworkers to remember me!) I hope it gets better for you there 🙂

Amanda…I’m not sure summer in GA is something to look forward to. It’s the first of may and already getting up to 90 every day with tons of humidity. You kinda become a prisoner in your own home! But if you like Pinterest, like me, this isn’t the worst thing in the world.

Stacy- I have a feeling I was a bit hormonal from being pregnant. I could hardly help it when I burst into tears, cried as I walked out the door and then cried all the way home in the car. It was a little traumatizing, to be honest. But things here are already good and getting better!

Hi! I stopped over from the Blog Hop. I also had to quit my job to move to GA, and before I found one, we moved again. A few months later I’m finally in the last few steps of the hiring process for a job. I’ve tried to make the most of being at home but I’m definitely looking forward to being able to work again.

I found you from the blog hop, and looking forward to reading more. We were at Carson for 3 years and loved it. Our next stop is also Benning, and to say I am looking forward to it would be an understatement. Ha though, I can safely say that those awesome brick on-post housing I am opting out of. Being forced to live on post here in California has more than ruined me. Best of luck with all your projects. Being a stay at home Mom is really amazing.

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[…] is key. Lily (3 1/2) and Hudson (2 1/2) lives have been anything but. Andy deployed for a year, we moved twice in less than a year (living in a hotel, apartment and two houses), we had a baby, plus Andy […]

[…] a year (which was when and why I started this blog). We spent three years in Fort Carson, CO and just moved to Fort Benning, GA. We have two pups: Lily the Goldendoodle and Hudson the German Shepherd aka […]

[…] 2012 (the day after her dad’s birthday- July 11th). 4. I live on post at Fort Benning, GA in “historic housing.” We’re here for the Army MCCC. 5. I have two dogs- Lily, the Goldendoodle (who eats socks, […]